Will Karras remain chairman of regents?

Now that gubernatorial candidate Nolan Karras is out of the race, the next political hurdle is whether he'll retain his seat as chairman of the State Board of Regents.

"I'm not going to make any decisions after the emotion of yesterday," Karras said Wednesday. "It's something I've got to think about."

If peer opinion means anything, it will probably be an easy leap if Karras decides to stay on as chairman, which is a two-year term — regents, who regulate higher education in Utah, serve at the governor's choosing for six-year terms.

Regent Jed Pitcher credits Karras with bringing a "business mind" to the regents.

"He's made us a very fiscally responsible organization by insisting on strategic fiscal plans," Pitcher said. "If Nolan would like to stay on (as chairman) I would certainly support him."

"He has my support," said regent Maria Sweeten, who also served as Karras' campaign coordinator. "I would hope that he is a lock for chair."

The soonest election would come at the next regents meeting in August. At that time, the 18-member board would consider nominations and vote on a new chairman from among its ranks or to retain Karras. George Mantes has been acting chairman during Karras' bid for governor.

The position requires little or no campaigning, and when Karras was elected chairman two years ago — one year into his term — he went unchallenged. According to regents bylaws, a regent can serve only two terms as chairman.

Regents considered changing the bylaws to add one more term for the seat of chairman when Karras' popular predecessor, Charles Johnson, was serving, according to Dave Buhler, Utah System of Higher Education associate commissioner of public affairs.

Karras' own popularity among regents has come during a time when he's had to steer a state-funded higher education system through tough economic times, which is blamed for creating huge funding gaps for enrollment growth and operations costs within the Utah system.

Sweeten called Karras a consensus-builder who has helped create closer relationships with legislators and help put higher education in a "better place" during a "critical" time.

USHE officials are now awaiting a replacement for Johnson, who has vacated his seat on the board in preparation for becoming the chief financial officer of the Environmental Protection Agency in Washington.

The student seat on the board is also up for grabs, and the governor is now considering three nominations, according to Buhler.

---

E-mail: sspeckman@desnews.com